Cry for help: El Paso's Emergence Health Network aids those in need

Michelle Williams (standing on chair) plays out a scence where she is attempting to jump off a bridge, during a training workshop, as Lisa Arevalos attempts to intervene by applying the skills she was taught during the Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) class. (Ruben R Ramirez/El Paso Times)

Just two weeks ago Jacintha Saldanha, a nurse at King Edward VII hospital where Kate Middleton was staying, committed suicide after she was tricked by a prank call in which a pair of Australian radio DJs said they were Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles.

Locally, a number of murder-suicides have occurred this year. The latest occurred Nov. 26, when 27-year-old Johnnyray Nevarez was found dead in a white Nissan Sentra sedan.

Detectives determined that Nevarez shot and killed himself while in the car after suffocating his pregnant 20-year-old wife, Crystal Sarai Lugo, who was found close to a Juárez landfill.

REPORTER

Victor Martinez

"Suicide does not discriminate. It can happen to anybody," said Anna Basler-White, the provider relations coordinator for Emergence Health Network. "It's not just your average Joe or Jane at home. It could be a person who has this huge spotlight on them, who is

super successful and has everything that you could possibly want and still they are dealing with an internal struggle."

Basler-White -- or any other provider of mental health care -- does not pretend to know why people choose to end their lives.

Nobody knows the problems those individuals face or situations they consider unmanageable.

No one knows the emotions those people feel and what they perceive as unbearable.

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What Basler-White does know is that those vulnerable people in need should not be embarrassed or afraid to seek help.

"Culturally, in this area, things are kept very private," Basler-White said. "You keep it in the family, you don't talk to anybody else, you don't involve strangers. There has always been a stigma attached with the mental health profession along with seeking help."

She said mental health care organizations such as Emergence Health Network, or EHN -- formerly El Paso Mental Health and Mental Retardation -- are working diligently on breaking that stigma.

Research has shown that nearly 30,000 Americans kill themselves each year and that one in nine persons has seriously considered suicide.

Emergence Health Network serves two distinct groups of individuals -- those with a mental health diagnoses and those with intellectual disabilities. El Paso MHMR served 7,600 people last year.

"I encourage people to talk about what's going on, to vent about it, to do what you have to do to make sure you're not bottling that inside because when people bottle it inside, that's when people tend to act out" she said. "Talk to somebody, talk to anybody. It's OK -- it's good to seek out help."

Michelle Williams (standing on chair) plays out a scence where she is attempting to jump off a bridge, during a training workshop, as Lisa Arevalos attempts to intervene and apply the skills she was taught during the Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) class. (Ruben R Ramirez/El Paso Times)

All employees of Emergence Health Network are going through certification in Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training, or ASIST. The two-day workshop is designed to help people feel more confident and competent when addressing and preventing suicide.

During the holidays, before Thanksgiving and after New Year's Day, some people tend to have a difficult time.

"There has been mixed research on it," said Brittany Hall, the program administrator for Emergence Health Network's Northeast Outpatient Clinic . "It's really based on the individual person."

She said some people might question their value or self-worth during the holidays.

"Loss is a big thing," she said. "Loss of a loved one, loss of a job, financially instability, anything that involves loss would have someone questioning their self esteem or their worth as a person."

Basler-White, who is the lead trainer for the ASIST program, said the reason for a link between suicide ideations -- one of the symptoms of major depression and bipolar depression where a person has thoughts about or an unusual preoccupation with suicide -- and the holidays is that there is so much emphasis on the family.

"When individuals don't have that significant family involvement and that closeness and when they see everybody around them getting involved in the holidays, it does increase the depression rates in those individuals," she said. "Again, it's on an individual basis, so I can't say one way or another if the holiday is the cause. I would suggest reaching out to your loved ones during the holidays -- you never know who it will impact."

"They aren't at the level where they can understand everything and they can't articulate everything back to their loved ones so they may feel alone. With everything going on at schools from bullying to not fitting in, that just adds to it," she said.

Arms encourages parents to keep things positive when dealing with their children.

"There are things that help children cope and stay healthy," she said. "Find the things that make them happy. They need to realize that they are not alone and that there are always people there to help."

Michelle Williams, the ER liaison for Emergence Health Network, said the best thing parents can do is be honest with their children.

"Parent need to sit down with their children and let them know that everyone goes through problems and issues in their life," Williams said. "It's just a matter of how well we deal and cope with what's going on in our life."

Victor R. Martinez may be reached at vmartinez@ elpasotimes.com; 546-6128. Follow him on Twitter @vrmart.

Symptoms of depressionAccording to the National Institute of Mental Health, symptoms of depression may include the following:

Difficulty concentrating, remembering details and making decisions.

Fatigue and decreased energy.

Feelings of guilt, worthlessness, and/or helplessness.

Feelings of hopelessness and/or pessimism.

Insomnia, early-morning wakefulness or excessive sleeping.

Irritability, restlessness.

Loss of interest in activities or hobbies once pleasurable, including sex,

Overeating or appetite loss.

Persistent aches or pains, headaches, cramps, or digestive problems that do not ease even with treatment.